Improvement in boot-treeing mechanisms



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

W. S. HALL.

Boot-Treeing Mechanism. No. 221,456. Patented Nov. 11,

".PEYEES FHOTO-UTHOGRAPMER, WASHINGTON, D Q

PATENT FFIGE.

lVIL'LIAM SMITH HALL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN BOOT-TREEING MECHANISMS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 221,456, dated November 11, 1879; application filed September 5, 1879.

*ing-boots; and it consists, essentially, in the combination with a rotary rubbing wheel or tool and rotating boot-holding mechanism, of means to automatically change the relative position of the boot and wheel or tool, longitudinally, as the wheel or tool is rotated, whereby the wheel in ay be made to operate upon the boot from one to its other end, to fit it to the tree, and rub out wrinkles.

In this present embodiment of my invention a boot, supposed to be held upon a tree of usual construction, is so supported in a swinging frame as to be rotated slowly about an axis substantially parallel with the side seams of the boot, and a rapidly-rotated rubbingwheel, in addition to its rotations, is also moved longitudinally in the direction of the length of the boot, so that the said wheel, preferably first placed in contact with the boot near the sole, may be made, as the boot and wheel are rotated, to travel over the boot vamp and counter to the top of the leg, fitting the boot to the tree and treein g itin a most thorough manner.

Figure 1 represents, in front elevation, a boot-treeingmachine containing myinvention; Fig. 2, a section thereof on the line in a; Fig. 3, a section of the rubbing-wheel carryingframe and its actuating-shaft 011 the line y y, and Fig. 4 a detail of a modification to be re ferred to.

The frame a of the machine may be of proper shape to hold the working parts.

The main rotating shaft 1) of the machine, driven in any usual way by power or otherwise, has placed loosely upon it two belt-pulleys, c d, the hubs 2 3 of which are adapted to be engaged, the one or the other by a clutching-sleeve, e, placed on shaft 1), so as to rotate with and slide on the said shaft, the sleeve bein g under the control of a suitable shipper, f, in order that the sleeve may be made to engage the hub of and rotate one or the other of v which it is desired'to move the wheel 9 along over the boot 7i.

Surrounding the shaft 1) is the frame i, which carries the shafts of the rubbing-wheels g j and a rag-wheel, k, each of said shafts having a pinion engaged by the toothed gear Z, splined upon the shaft 11, the said toothed gear keeping the said wheels in rotation, one or the other of them always acting against the boot as may be desired or needed.

The frame and toothed gear are held between the arms of a yoke, m, or equivalent engaging device, fitted loosely at its lower end to shaft 1), and receiving at its upper end a screw-shaft, n, adapted to be engaged by a half-nut, 0, connected with a stem, 1), provided with a head, 10, by which the stem may be lifted to disengage the half-nut from the screwshaft when it is not desired that the frame and rubbing wheel be moved longitudinally by the shaft, a spring, 11, holding the said half-nut down at all other times.

The sleeve part of the wheel-carryin g frame 5 has at one end notched arms 13, adapted to be engaged by the holding device q, herein shown as a sliding bolt connected with the yoke m, the bolt having a handle, 14, and a screw or fastening device, 15, to hold it in place.

By this coutrivance either of the wheels 9, j, or it may be placed in position to operate upon the boot.

If desired, the frame may carry one or any desired number of rubbing-wheels.

The screw-shaft n has fixed upon it two beltpulleys, 16 17, connected, the first by the plain belt 18 with the pulley c, and the latter by the crossed belt 19 with the pulley d, so that one or the other of the said pulleys c (I may, when engaged by the clutch-sleeve 0, turn the shaft "12 to the right or left, according to which direction it is desired the frame and rubbing;

wheel to move, the said wheel operatingagainst the boot from the counter and vamp end along the leg to its top, and vice versa.

The clutching mechanism is herein shown as opera-ted automatically.

The clutch-lever fis engaged by the arm 3 of the shipper-rod t, having collars 17 1S acted upon at intervals or at the completion of the traverse of the frame by the shipper moving arm 11 attached to yoke m.

- in one arm of the swinging frame a pivoted at 11 and provided with a suitable spring, or

with the rod 21 of frame a by means of the The collars 17 18, one or both, are made adjustable on the shipper-rod, according to the length of the boot.

Instead of the particular shipping mechanism and clutching mechanism herein shown, I may employ other well-known devices for like purposes.

The boot-tree w is herein shown as a solid boot-shaped piece, upon which it is supposed a boot, 71, is fitted, as indicated in the drawings; but in practice I propose to employ the same kind of a tree and centrally-located expanding device for it, that is now commonly used in boot-factories; and in Fig. LI'llEtVG shown a suitable connection for it.

The boot-tree, Fig. 1, at its leg end is shown supported upon a short rotating shaft, 00, held equivalent, 0 by which to keep the boot, stretched over the tree, pressed against the rubbing-wheel.

The heel of the boot is held by a heel-clamp, (7?, made adjustable for heels of different sizes, the said clamp being upon a shaft, 0 extended loosely through a tubular bearing, f adjustably held in the movable arm of the frame a by the screw 20. The arm is connected screw 22.

When a boot on the tree is to be treed, the leg end of the tree is first placed over the shaft .20, and fixedthereto, so as to-rotate with the said shaft when it is rotated. Then the arm 9 which at this time is loose on rod 21, is turned down until the shaft 0 is in line with shaft 00, when the heel-clamp is moved to engage the heel, and is clamped in position thereon.

The boot-tree being supported in front of the rubbing-wheel then to operate upon it, the machine is started withthe wheel in contact with the counter of the boot next'the sole, or against the vamp near the sole, and as the rubbing-wheel is rotated and moved longitudinally, asbefore described, the tree and boot thereon are also rotated through the belts 23 24, clutch-pulley 25, pulleys 26, 27, and 28, the latter on shaft 00, which supports the tree.

The clutch-pulley 25 is loose on the main shaft 7), and when turned is engaged by the clutch-sleeve 29, under control of the clutchlever 30, so that, when desired, the boot-tree may have its rotation stopped altogether, or so that a boot provided with a fancy top in front, the wheel 9 having arrived at the top of the bootleg, may be turned by hand for part of a rotation in opposite directions, so that the wheel will come in contact only with the rear' of the boot-leg.

In Fig. 4 I have shown the end b of a boottree in common use, with the end of the usual expanding device, 11 which is to be partially drawn out from it, and upon the end of b I have added a screw-threaded extension, b

Instead of the shaft 00 shown in Fig. 1, I have shown a socketed sleeve, 0, to receive the end 12 of the tree and the said extension. The sleeve 0 extended loosely through .the frame a has fastened to it the driving-pulley 28.

The handle (1 or it may bea hand-wheel, is applied to the end of the extension-rod b and by turning d ,-one face of itacting against the hub of the pulley, the extension-rod and usual expanding device, I), may be drawn partially out of the end of the tree b thereby expandin g it. The rubbing-wheel j has a broader edge than the one g.

The rag-wheel is a wheel having a soft elastic surface for brushing or cleaning the surface of the boot.

The wheel j may, if desired, be employed to stuff or rub into the leather oil or dressing removed from the boot before crimping it, such oil or dressing being necessary when the boot is being treed.

The wheel 9 is shaped as a disk, and its narrow periphery or edge is adapted to operate upon the entire foot of the boot-upper and into the shank, which, it is obvious, would not be the case if rubbing devices were made as a cylinder with concaved surface, and mounted on an axis at right angles to the axisabout which the boot-tree is rotated, as is common.

The axis of rotation of the rubblng-disk gis substantially parallel with the axis of rotation of the tree.

I claim- I 1. In a boot-treeing machine, the rotating disk-shaped rubbing-wheel 9, having its axis substantially parallel withthe axis of the boottree, and boot-tree audits supporting devices, combined with mechanism adapted to change the relative positions of the said disk g and tree longitudinally, while the edge of the said disk operates upon the boot, substantially as 1 described.

2. A rotary rubbing-wheel, combined witha boot-tree and a swinging frame to support it, to thereby permit the boot'held on the rotatin g boot-tree to be pressed'in contactwith the said rubbing-wheel, substantially as described.

3. In a boot-treein g machine, a boot-tree and mechanism to engage and rotate it, combined with a clamp to-embrace and hold the heel of theboot, substantially as described.

4. The swinging frame and its rotating shaft to engage and turn the boot-tree, combined with a pivoted arm and connected heel-clamping devices to permit the boot-tree to be .placed upon and be withdrawn from the shaft which rotates it, substantially as described.

5. In a boot-treeing machine, a frame provided with a rubbing-wheel, a yoke, and a screw-shaft to move the frame horizontally, and a shaft and connecting devices, substantially as described, between it and'the shaftof the rubbing-wheel, to rotate it, substantially as set forth.

6. In a boot-treeing machine, a rotating boot-tree and a frame provided with two or more rotating wheels to-act upon a boot held upon the tree, combined with the holding de- Y belt-shipping devices and clutch-pulleys, subvice for the frame, to permit either of the In testimony whereof I have signed my said wheels to be held in position to act upon name to this specification in the presence of the boot, substantially as described. two subscribing Witnesses.

7. In a boottreeing machine, a rotary-rubhing-Wheel and mechanism to reciprocate its 7 WM. SMITH HALL.

carrying' frame longitudinally, combined with \Vitnesses:

N. E. WHITNEY;

stantially as described, to reverse the move-t} G. W. GREGORY, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. 

